Joys of Motherhood
by Ramens
Summary: Ozai is away, and Ursa struggles to keep her sanity while caring for young Zuko and Azula.
1. Chapter 1

**I'm sort of writing this out of boredom. But Azula is my favorite character, and I've been wanting to write a story about Zuko and Azula as very young kids. This is the first of a few random mini-stories I have planned.**

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Ursa grimaced as the pain of breast-feeding came back to her. It had been over a year since Zuko did it, and though she felt sadness over the loss of that bonding experience, she realized how freeing it was. But here she was again, nursing her infant child, Azula. The infant bit down when she was full, causing Ursa to yelp in pain, and carefully pulling Azula away.

"Whatsa' matter mommy?" Zuko asked, startled by his mother's cry.

"No it's nothing.. Azula just bit me," Ursa replied.

Zuko stood up, and shook his finger at Azula. "No, bad baby! No biting mommy!"

Ursa couldn't help chuckle at her son scolding the newborn. She was actually just over about two months old, but Ursa couldn't help refer to her as a newborn; she was so tiny.

"Where's daddy?" Zuko asked innocently.

Ursa smiled, and rubbed her son's head. "I already told you, he's surveying nearby Earth Kingdom towns.." Ursa frowned for a second; Ozai had left a couple days after Azula was born, only staying long enough to name his daughter, and give his wife and son a fleeting goodbye. Ursa was on bed-rest at the time, so she could not say goodbye at the port. Ozai did not seem all too torn up about it.

"When's Uncle and Cousin getting here?"

"They should be here very soon," Ursa combed back Zuko's hair with her fingers, and gently pushed him to keep playing. Her head was pounding from the night before; Azula was crying all night. It seemed she constantly either was hungry, needed to be changed, or just needed attention. Each one created a cycle. She looked down at Azula; she was asleep. Ursa's eyes drooped as she watched Zuko play, and before long, she fell into a light sleep.

She was a woken by a sharp prod in the cheek. She opened her eyes to find Lu Ten staring at her.

"Good morning, Aunt Ursa!" Lu Ten said cheerfully.

Ursa's eyes opened wide. "It's morning?!"

"No, it's late afternoon. I just didn't know what else to say," Lu Ten chuckled.

"Oh.." Ursa rubbed her eyes, "When did you get here?"

"About ten minutes ago," Lu Ten bent down to Zuko and helped him stack the blocks he was playing this. "My dad is unloading our stuff."

As if on cue, Iroh came in, arms full with luggage, and dumped everything on the floor. "I'll just leave everything here!" Iroh turned around and smiled at Lu Ten and Ursa. "My goodness! This can't be Little Zuko, can it?"

"It's Zuko!" Zuko said loudly.

"Are you sure? You're too big to be him!" Iroh chuckled. Iroh crossed the room, and scooped up Zuko.

"I'm big Zuko, now!" Zuko said, pointing to himself.

"You sure are!" Iroh put Zuko down, and turned to Ursa. "I'm sorry Ursa! Did you lose weight?"

"Yeah, about five pounds," Ursa shifted the sleeping Azula in her arms.

"So, this is the new little one?" Iroh, held out his hands to take her, Ursa happily obliged. What's his name?"

"_Her _name is Azula," Iroh looked up at Ursa, "It was Ozai's idea."

"She looks like you," Iroh bounced the baby in his arms.

"I don't think you should do that.. She hates being woken.." But it was too late, Azula's eyes and mouth scrunched as she prepared to let out a screeching cry. When she did so, Zuko started crying too.

Lu Ten stuck a block in front of Zuko's face, a poor attempt to calm him down. "What's wrong?!"

"Zuko doesn't like it when Azula's upset, and Azula probably needs to be changed," Ursa sighed. She could handle breast-feeding, she could handle the late nights, but for some reason, changing bothered Ursa. She remembered the first time she had to do it with Zuko, she nearly threw up, and not to mention all of the squirming he did.

"I'll change her Aunt Ursa!" Lu Ten said, jumping up.

Ursa raised her eyebrows. "Are you sure Lu Ten? It's not easy."

"I can do it!" Lu Ten slapped his chest, and carefully took Azula from his father. Ursa told him where everything was, and told him what to do. He left, carrying Azula, but no more than a minute later, he came back, without Azula.

"I can't do it.." He was blushing. Iroh chuckled and went into the room where Lu Ten left Azula.

Lu Ten plopped down on the floor next to Zuko, holding out his hands. Lu Ten produced a small flame.

"Oh, Lu Ten, please be careful!" Ursa told him nervously.

"Don't worry, Aunt Ursa, I have great control. Dad told me so," Lu Ten watched as Zuko stared into the flame, his eyes wide. Zuko reached towards it, Ursa leaned forward uneasily, but Lu Ten extinguished it before Zuko could touch it.

"Zuko could probably protect himself from that flame," Iroh said, coming back with Azula. "Considering his father, he's probably already shown signs of Firebending, right?"

"Actually, no.. He hasn't shown any abilities at Firebending yet," Ursa said bitterly. She remembered how disappointed Ozai sounded when he realized that Zuko might not be a Firebender. He accused Ursa of cheating on him. That no offspring of his could ever be a non-bender. "But I'm sure he'll be a very powerful bender one day.."

"How was your pregnancy with Azula?" Iroh asked. Normally someone might have been taken aback by being asked a question like that, especially by a man, but Ursa knew what he was getting at.

"Very intense. And hot," Ursa said quietly. Iroh's eyes flickered towards her, shifting his hold on Azula. "By the second half of it, I had terrible fevers, and my whole abdomen was burning hot. I actually thought I was going to die.. I never had anything like that happen with Zuko."

"What did Ozai say?," Iroh held up Azula, letting her feet touch his legs.

"He seemed rather proud. Despite the fact that I was deathly ill, all he seemed to care about was the fact that we may have a Firebending prodigy. He_ joked_ that this child is probably his own," Ursa brushed her hair out of her face absentmindedly.

Azula let out a bubbly giggle. Zuko jumped up. "I'm a baby! Hold me!"

"Zuko, you're not a baby. You're too big to be held like that," Ursa told him. Zuko frowned, a frown not unlike Ozai's, and dropped to the floor, crossing his arms.

"Now, Ursa.. He's not going to little forever, he needs to take advantage of his youth when he can. I know I wish I did," Iroh laughed heartily. He patted his lap, "You can come up, Zuko."

A smile spread across the small boy's face, and he carefully crawled into his uncle's lap.

"Make the baby move over!" Zuko shouted, pushing against Azula's cheek.

"Zuko, if you're going to be there, you have share it with your sister," Ursa said, trying to be gentle, but strict at the same time.

"I know it's rough having a younger sibling, Zuko," Iroh told him gently, "I went through the same thing with your father."

"When do they go away?" Zuko asked, a pouting look on his face. Iroh chuckled.

"Never. They'll always be around," Iroh smiled as he said this.

Zuko looked at Azula, who seemed to be in the process of trying to fit her foot into her mouth. He stared at her for a moment, and then pointed and laughed. Azula stopped what she was doing, and stared, transfixed, at his finger. She grabbed it and sucked on it.

"That's gross Azula! Let go!" Zuko tried to pull away, but when he did, Azula bit down. He let a blood-curdling scream, causing Azula to do the same.

Ursa sighed, rubbing her temples. "I hope these kids get along in the future.."

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**I wasn't trying to make Ursa seem like an impatient mother, but she is a fairly new one, so she's bound have her share of problems. Hopefully, Ursa will return in S3, she's a very interesting character. I'm not sure if I'll continue this, or just leave it as a one-shot. I'll listen to what you guys think. X)  
**


	2. The Beach

**Well, you guys got what you wished for. I'm very glad you like you this story, it means a lot.**

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Though the week was hectic, Ursa was very glad she had Iroh and Lu Ten to help her out. Lu Ten kept trying to show Zuko how to Fire bend, but though Zuko seemed utterly fascinated by it, he could not quite grasp the concept yet. They were outside for a while, and Ursa was beginning to feel nervous when she didn't hear anything for an extended amount of time. She was right to feel nervous, however, when she suddenly heard a loud screaming. Lu Ten came running in with Zuko on his shoulders.

"What happened?!" Ursa asked in a frenzy.

"I was.. Fire bending and Zuko got too close.. And well, he burned his hand.." Lu Ten looked down meekly.

Ursa grabbed her son and looked at his hand; it was red, but it didn't seem to have burned the skin. She ran outside to a water pump, and ran cold water over his hand. She cooed softly to him, rubbing his head, until his cries became little whimpers.

"There, there, Zuzu.." Ursa said softly, but something she must have did upset him because he started crying again.

"I don't like Zuzu.." He said through a choked cry.

"I'm sorry, Zuko, I won't call you that," she hugged her son and put him down. He ran back inside. Ursa followed him.

"What was that about?" Iroh asked coming in with Azula.

"Zuko got burned.." Ursa said, her eyes flickering momentarily to Lu Ten. Iroh did not see that.

"By himself?"

"Uh.. No by.." Ursa started, but Lu Ten came over.

"By me.." Lu Ten, lowered his head. "I was showing him how to Firebend, but he got too close.. I'm sorry, Dad, Aunt Ursa."

Ursa and Iroh glanced at each other. "What should his punishment be?" Iroh asked her.

Ursa raised her shoulders and hands, shrugging. "I don't know.. I would think knowing that you scared the Fire Lord's only son out of Firebending would be punishment enough," Ursa smirked.

"Oh, what do you think Fire Lord Ozai will do when he finds out?" Iroh said, trying to keep a serious face.

"He has been working on a new Firebending move.." Ursa said, putting her finger to her chin thoughtfully.

"Ok, ok! I'm sorry! I'll be more careful around, Zuko!" Lu Ten bowed to the floor apologetically. "Please don't send me to Uncle Ozai!"

"Fire!" Zuko shouted randomly, "I'm a Firebender!"

"Yes, you are dear," Ursa said, even though she had no idea if that was true. "I'll hold Azula, Iroh."

Iroh handed over the infant, who seemed to have been asleep, and jerked awake when she was moved. She whimpered softly. Ursa quickly soothed her before she could start crying.

"Is Azula a Firebender, Mommy?" Zuko asked.

"We don't know yet, Zuko, she's too little. Maybe," Ursa told him. He didn't seem to like that answer.

"No! I'm a Firebender, not Azula! I'm stronger than her!" Zuko shouted.

"Zuko! No yelling!" Ursa shook her finger at him. Zuko shut his mouth and fell to the floor, crossing his arms. She sighed, turning to Iroh. "He sure has gotten sulky lately, do you think he misses Ozai?"

"It's possible. A boy needs his father," Iroh said softly.

"Hm.. Maybe it'll get his mind off of Ozai if we went to the beach," Ursa suggested.

"That's a great idea, Ursa!" Iroh stood up abruptly, startling Zuko.

"Do you want to go to the beach, Zuko?" Ursa asked her son. A big smile appeared on his face, and he nodded. "Then get your things together."

Zuko jumped up and ran towards his room. A few minutes later, he came back with an armful of random stuff; mostly toys.

"Not that many things, Zuko.." Ursa sighed, smiling. She got up, Azula on her shoulder, and took some of Zuko's toys away. "You'll have plenty to do at the beach."

To Ursa's surprise, Zuko nodded, and smiled. They packed up, and put their luggage into the carriage. Zuko insisted on sitting next to Lu Ten, so Ursa sat next to Iroh with Azula safely in her arms. The trip took longer than Ursa remembered, and Zuko and Azula were getting fussy. And after, what seemed forever, they finally arrived. Now the beach was exactly the same as Ursa remember; large, beautiful, and that strange dark sand.

She wished that the beach house was smaller, however, it seemed rather too much for a vacation home. She preferred the twins', Lo and Li, beach house; small, simple, and a bit tacky. Just like a beach home should be. But she had good memories of the royal beach house; it was where Ozai and she spent their honeymoon. She blushed at the memory.

"Ursa?" Iroh poked her.

"Hm?" She realized she was visibly blushing, so she put her hands to her face, making it look like she was scratching her cheeks. "Yes, sorry.. Come on Zuko!"

They walked inside to the large house; it had been awhile since they were there, so the air smelled and felt rather musky. Ursa and Iroh opened some windows to let some fresh air in.

"Mommy! I want to go swimming," Zuko shouted.

"Now? We just got here. Don't you want to rest a little bit before?" Ursa said, dropping some bags to the floor.

Zuko shook his head. "No, now!"

"Fine, get your swimming trunks on quickly," Ursa told him.

Zuko came back with his trunks on, carrying a small shovel. "I'm going to dig a hole _this_ big!" He held out his arms.

"Wow, maybe you should bury your uncle," Ursa chuckled. Iroh came back in with the rest of the luggage, "Iroh, you want to go to the beach, now?"

"Already? Sure, you can go on ahead, I'll unpack," Iroh smiled.

"Ok. Lu Ten, do you to go now?" Ursa asked him.

"Sure, I have my swim trunks on already, anyway," Lu Ten grinned.

Ursa grabbed a large beach blanket, shoved it into a bag, handed a large umbrella to Lu Ten and they headed out the door. Zuko darted past her and ran down the path leading to the beach.

"Zuko! Don't run so fast, you'll trip!" Ursa shouted to her son. The toddler was pretty fast for his age, but she knew that he wasn't very graceful. Luckily he slowed down a little, and safely made it down the dunes. Ursa found a good spot, and laid out the blanket, placing Azula on it. Lu Ten put the umbrella in, covering the baby from the bright sun.

Zuko immediately began digging with his shovel, soon making a hole the height of his leg. Lu Ten helped him.

"Be careful of the sand falling into the hole, Zuko," Lu Ten warned him. But despite him telling Zuko this, the sand still fell down the sides. Zuko made a frustrated whine.

"No! Stop it!" He grabbed the sand falling in, and threw it, only for it to be blown by the wind towards Ursa. She shielded her eyes with her hand, but Azula didn't have that ability. She cried as some of the sand got into her eyes.

"Zuko! Don't throw the sand!" She snapped, "Lu Ten, why don't you take him into the water."

"Ok Aunt Ursa. Come on, Zuko, let's go swimming!"

Zuko got a bright smile on his face, and ran towards the water; Lu Ten slowly following him. But Zuko wasn't in the water for more than five seconds before he got out, running over to Ursa.

"What's wrong, Zuko, is the water cold?" Ursa highly doubted that since most of the Fire Nation was tropical. But then she realized he was 'holding' himself, "Do you have to go the bathroom?"

Zuko nodded. "Then.." Ursa looked around; the closest people were nearly a half a mile away, "Just.. Go in the water."

Zuko shook his head exaggeratingly. Ursa really didn't want to go all the way back up, but by the look on her son's face, he wasn't going to wait much longer. So she made a move to get up.

"I'll take him, Aunt Ursa," Lu Ten said, coming back over.

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to waste your trip to the beach," Ursa said, mostly hoping he wouldn't reconsider his offer.

"It's no problem! Come on, Zuko!"

Ursa watched as the two boys left, and she absentmindedly stroked Azula's cheek. The baby let out a small whine, so Ursa picked her up.

"Isn't it beautiful here, Azula?" Ursa asked her daughter, holding her facing the water. Azula turned to her mother, her large, amber eyes opened wide. She held out her hand, and grabbed Ursa's lips. Ursa laughed softly. "What are you doing?"

"Princess Ursa?" A woman's voice called over to her. Ursa turned her head and saw that it was her friend, Jiao. She didn't get to see the woman much since both families were of high-status, and had their own responsibilities.

"Jiao! Oh my goodness, I haven't seen you since my wedding!" Ursa got up, and walked over to the woman. She realized that Jiao was holding a baby, "Is that your's?"

"Oh, yes, this is my daughter, Mai. She was born six months ago," Dinah noticed Azula, "Is this your daughter?"

"Yes, this is Azula," Ursa sighed, "And I have a two year old son, Zuko."

"Oh, how lucky you are! Two kids!" Jiao gushed. She bent down and placed Mai on the blanket; Ursa did the same with Azula. Mai, however, could sit up, while Azula could only lie on her back. The black-haired little baby, Mai, stared at Azula, completely confused.

"She's never been around another baby before," Jiao chuckled. "Mai. Mai! This is Azula. Be nice to her."

Mai put her face closer to Azula's, moved away, and pointed, facing her mother with her mouth hanging open. Azula didn't seem to like being pointed at because she began thrashing her tiny fists around. Mai turned around, facing Azula eventually getting hit in the face by said tiny fists. Mai fell over, crying loudly. Azula giggled.

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**I loved writing the beach scene because I love going to the beach, whether it's the ocean or a lake. The scene where Zuko had to use the bathroom was inspired by my cousin, Will, who, when, he was younger, every time he got into the water, would have to go the bathroom. But he would refuse to go in the water, so whoever was watching him at the moment, would have to walk with him all the way back the house. Yea, good times, yea.**

**I had no idea what to call Mai's mother, since, as I recall, she wasn't given a name in the show. Also I didn't know what her title would be, so she just became "Ursa's friend"**

**And the NYCC is tomorrow! I am beside myself with excitement, and also because of the fact that I watched a little trailer for "The Boiling Rock" that's going to air soon in Brazil. Though I don't live in Brazil, and nor do I speak Portuguese, the fact that it's airing and looks epic beyond comprehension, is enough to get me excited.**


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